


the mortifying ordeal of being known

by surrenderer



Series: kylux twitfic archive [3]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: First Time, Inexperienced Kylo Ren, Kissing, M/M, Pre-Canon, Pre-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Secrets, Touch-Starved Armitage Hux
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-06
Updated: 2020-09-06
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:22:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26329336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/surrenderer/pseuds/surrenderer
Summary: The first time Hux ever sees Kylo Ren without his helmet is in a supply closet just off the conference room they’ve vacated, five days after Ren has officially joined him on the Finalizer.
Relationships: Armitage Hux/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: kylux twitfic archive [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1911586
Comments: 8
Kudos: 48





	the mortifying ordeal of being known

**Author's Note:**

> Previously posted in its most basic form [on Twitter.](https://twitter.com/parttimewonders/status/1297343590847221760) This version has been significantly expanded.
> 
> Thanks to [sternfleck](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sternfleck) for laughing when I suggested this title as a joke, and for still laughing when it stopped being a joke.

The first time Hux ever sees Kylo Ren without his helmet is in a supply closet just off the conference room they’ve vacated, five days after Ren has officially joined him on the _Finalizer_. Only the emergency lights on the floor offer any sort of light in the cramped space.

It’s just enough for Hux to see the line of Ren’s jaw, his large nose. His eyes are black shadows in the dim space, but he’s very much human, and also young, Hux realizes. Younger than he is at the grand age of twenty-nine—this will settle many bets among the ship’s crew, as they argue over Ren’s age, the extent of his powers, whether he’s even human. The credits have been exchanging hands faster than the officers can keep track of.

But Ren isn’t displeasing to look at either. His hair curls with sweat, free from its uncomfortable confines, and his mouth is generous, pink and lush, and he’s leaning in closer. Hux takes a step back, until his back hits the closed door. If someone were to open it now, he’d come tumbling out from the storage space and into the brightly-lit hallway, with Ren following.

“Do I disappoint you, General?” Ren whispers, his voice clear of any modulation, his breath warm against Hux’s mouth.

“In most ways, yes,” Hux answers. But somehow, not in this, and especially not as Ren puts his hands on him.

Kylo Ren is impulsive, arrogant, a pain in the arse, and his co-commander to boot. He lacks the discipline to ever be a proper leader, that much is clear after only five days on the ship together.

But here, in this small space separated from the rest of the ship only by thin walls and an unlocked door, he’s flesh and blood and dark eyes and a kissable mouth. And Hux… Hux hasn’t been touched like this in far too long.

Ren’s lips are soft when they finally kiss, much more hesitant than Hux imagined he would be—not that he _has_ , it’s just that Ren has him trapped here—and even if he’s inexperienced, Hux can work with that.

Next time, next time they’ll be somewhere private, where they can do this for hours, he thinks hazily, the two of them pressed against each other out of necessity in this tiny space. He can feel the cool durasteel against his back and Ren’s warm body against his front, pushing into his space and covering him. His fingers curl around the rough cloth of Ren’s cowl at the thought of the two of them doing this in a bed, where Ren can hold him down properly and crowd the air out of his lungs, among other things.

“Already thinking about next time?” Ren rumbles when they break apart for air. Of course he’s been reading Hux’s mind this whole time.

It’s enough to shake Hux out of his daydream, although he still revels in the feeling of Ren’s body solid against his. “Only that the next time won’t be in a supply closet,” he says crisply, and much more confidently than he feels, one gloved hand on Ren’s chest to keep him from leaning in again. He wants it too much, they both do, and that is more than enough of a reason to stop. “Tomorrow, after beta shift. My quarters. Don’t let anyone see you come in.”

The words are out of his mouth before he can stop them. Another lapse of judgment, one Hux can’t explain away as easily. Once is to simply to satisfy curiosity. Twice is an indulgence. Three times is too dangerous to think about.

Hux can’t afford indulgences when the First Order’s victories ride on his shoulders, but the invitation is there, out in the open between them now. It’s too late to take it back now.

But Ren’s eyes gleam with victory, like this is what he’s been hoping for since he pulled Hux into this supply closet while they sniped at each other in the hallway. “Tomorrow, General.” He lifts a hand towards Hux’s face, and Hux is ready to flinch away, or to shove him away, but Ren only pushes a stray lock of hair back in its place.

It takes all of Hux’s remaining strength to not lean into his touch.

He watches as Ren picks up his helmet from the shelf where he’d left it, the hiss of the locking mechanism loud in the silence of the closet. “After you,” Ren says, gesturing to the door once the mask is securely in place. Hux looks at him, imposing and dangerous once more, and considers what he knows now about the person underneath, the little details that make the man.

Ren’s deep voice, and his dark eyes, and his soft mouth, and the curiously inexperienced way he kisses. His gloved hands tight around Hux’s waist like he doesn’t know where else to touch him yet. But that doesn’t matter. He can learn.

He’s really so young, under all that untamed power and his boundless overconfidence. He’ll need a guiding hand and a soft touch to shape him into what he’s meant to become. Not Snoke’s restless apprentice, certainly not his attack dog, but something more.

Something greater.

There’s a sinking feeling in Hux’s stomach, and a pounding in his heart, when he studies Ren again and it has nothing to do with the typical frustration he feels when they’re around each other. No, no, it’s something more than that.

…oh, Hux is in trouble now, isn’t he?

**Author's Note:**

> This could be considered a loose prequel to [one of my earlier fics.](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24688000)
> 
> I am here on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/parttimewonders), and here on [Tumblr.](https://part-timewonders.tumblr.com/)


End file.
